Is it correct that Lloyds Avios credit card upgrade vouchers are not valid on Zone 3 flights?

Yesterday I published an update on BA’s roll-out of ‘zero taxes’ Avios redemptions on short-haul.

At present this has only been rolled out to Zone 3 routes which traditionally require 10,000 Avios each-way in Euro Traveller and 20,000 Avios each way in Club Europe.

EDIT: Ignore this article – BA has now fixed the problem.

According to Stuart in the HfP comments yesterday, it is not currently possible to redeem a Lloyds Avios Rewards credit card upgrade voucher on any of these routes.  The IT changes required to offer ‘zero taxes’ Avios redemptions have had the side effect of stopping the BA computers being able to use the vouchers.  This means that you currently cannot use the vouchers to upgrade to Club Europe on routes such as Malta, Greece, southern Italy, Morocco etc.

This HfP article tells you all you need to know about upgrading British Airways flights with Avios.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2024)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.